


Plateau

by FinnWritess



Category: DreamSMP, Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Angst, Bittersweet, Canon Compliant, Established Relationship, Fake Character Death, Kinda, Kissing, Light Angst, M/M, One Shot, Short, i only know like maybe two other people who ship this im in hell, i'm so invested in this its unhealthy, why are all the other fics under this pairing just. oneshot books
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-27
Updated: 2021-02-27
Packaged: 2021-03-18 17:27:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 874
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29737305
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FinnWritess/pseuds/FinnWritess
Summary: “We,” Schlatt corrects as he gets up. “We can’t stay here.”There’s a moment of terse silence.“... You’re not coming.”-OR-Schlatt fakes his death and goes to meet with Dream, in the place they planned to if everything went to shit.
Relationships: Clay | Dream/Jschlatt (Video Blogging RPF)
Kudos: 45





	Plateau

**Author's Note:**

> i. am so invested in this ship. help me.

The forest is full of things that threaten to trip him up at every turn; roots, leaf litter, even the bones of mobs, but he can’t slow down. It’s after nightfall, and he has nothing. No armour, no weapons, not even some food. It’s not safe, and so he has to keep moving.

Schlatt hates this. The feeling of his heart wanting to explode in his chest from the way its working overtime, his breathing heavy and ragged as he runs, every muscle in him protesting. Only the fear of death, true death, spurs him to keep moving.

He’s not entirely sure where he is. But he does know where he’s going.

They’d agreed upon the place if anything went wrong. And things definitely had gone wrong.

Everyone thought he was dead. He’d had to let them believe that, had to sacrifice a life just to sell the idea and ensure his own safety (which sounds ironic now, as he hears an arrow, no doubt shot by a skeleton, whizz just over his head). Lord knows how much longer it would have been before they all turned on him and ensured he died permanently.

He breaks the treeline and an open plain stretches before him, spreading off into the darkness. Schlatt pauses to try and get his bearings, and barely manages to work out the direction he needs to go in when the tell-tale hiss of a creeper sounds from behind him. He doesn’t move fast enough to be fully clear of the blast range, but he’s barely propelled a few feet by the explosion.

It’s nowhere near enough to kill him, or even seriously injure him, but he still winces as he gets to his feet. Scrapes and bruises aren’t any less painful when you’ve been through far worse injuries. That’s something Schlatt’s learnt firsthand; sure, a sword through the gut is far more painful, but it doesn’t make minor injuries hurt any less. It just gives him motivation to keep moving, evidence to back up the thoughts of ‘ _ I’m fine, it’s nothing serious _ ’ as he presses on.

Every part of him aches to stop. He can’t. The mobs force him onwards, with their threat of attack, and the knowledge that civilisation can no longer be his home. A mountain looms not far in the distance, tall and steep. Torches light parts of it, scattered around by those who’d long since sapped it of any valuable ores.

Schlatt draws closer. One trail of torches stands out from the rest; it’s longer, continues further upwards until it disappears from sight. This is the trail he heads towards. His muscles protest as he begins the ascent, hauling himself up the boulders.

Pebbles shift under his feet, some breaking free to tumble down the cliffside. Schlatt doesn’t stop. He climbs higher and higher and higher until he’s hauling himself rather unceremoniously over the top and onto the flat-ish ground of a plateau. He breathes heavy and hard, laying there on the dusty rock.

A masked face comes into his line of sight. Schlatt can’t help but grin with something akin to relief.

“You made it.” Dream’s tone betrays no emotion.

“Weren’t expecting me to?” Schlatt asks as he sits up. “Thought I’d die for real?”

The mask covering Dream’s face betrays no expression, but he visibly tenses, just a little, at Schlatt’s words. “You can’t stay here.”

“ _ We _ ,” Schlatt corrects as he gets up. “We can’t stay here.”

There’s a moment of terse silence. 

“... You’re not coming.”

“I can’t.” Dream’s turned to look back in the direction of civilisation. The buildings are stark against the sky, dark and tall. “They’ll burn everything to the ground if I don’t try to keep them in line.”

Schlatt understands, but it hurts all the same. “But you’ll visit?”

Dream lifts his mask, and his eyes glisten slightly in the moonlight; it takes Schlatt a moment to realise it’s due to unshed tears. “As often as I can.”

Silence falls between them again. The wind whistles softly, but it’s cold and biting. The moment feels full of grief, and yet Schlatt doesn’t want it to end. He doesn’t want to have to turn and walk away, doesn’t want to glance over his shoulder to see Dream disappearing in the opposite direction, so he stands still and prays for time to stop, even for a moment.

“You should go.”

Time never did seem to work in Schlatt’s favour. He exhales heavily at Dream’s words.

“I’ll let you know where I settle.”

Dream gives him a sword. It’s all he can spare without letting any suspicion fall on him.

“Stay safe.” Dream leans over to press a chaste kiss to Schlatt’s cheek. Schlatt catches him before he can properly draw back to kiss him properly. It’s short, and bittersweet. Neither of them want to break apart, but they know they have to.

“I’ll see you soon, yeah?”

Dream pulls his mask back down. “Soon.”

Then they’re turning their backs to each other to go their separate ways. Schlatt doesn’t let himself look back, just hefting the sword higher as the glow of torches fades behind him. 

Now all he has to do is survive long enough to build himself a new home.


End file.
